Mary Mackey's-The Notorious Mrs. Winston, a review

THE NOTORIOUS MRS. WINSTON
Mary Mackey
Berkley Books
May 2007
$14.00U.S./17.50 CAN, Paperback
340 pp
978-0425215128.

Book Description from the Back Cover

"Married to an older man who sees her as little more than a possession, Claire Winston feels trapped and unhappy, but she knows her personal suffering pales in comparison to the hardships of the nation, which is teetering on the precipice of civil war. And she has a secret that helps ease her despair: her family's devotion to the cause of assisting runaway slaves to freedom, a purpose she embraces, and of which her husband is unaware. Still, the empty pretense of her marriage makes her vulnerable to temptation, and soon she finds herself captivated by John Taylor, her husband's nephew. In his arms she finds the passion and tenderness her marriage lacks, but as much as John loves her, he is devoted first and foremost to the Confederacy, and to the band of rebel guerillas known as Morgan's Raiders. Separated from John for more than two years by the forces of history, and by her husband's machinations, Claire will travel boldly across the war-torn country in search of her lover. Until, disguised as a male soldier, she finds herself drafted by none other than General Morgan himself, swept up in the greatest guerilla raid in American history, and caught between her loyalty to the Union and her love for John."

http://www.marymackey.com/Pages/books.html

My Review

Claire thought she was in love with her new husband Henry, but soon after they were married his obsession with photographing her became a source of discomfort and revulsion. He wouldn’t touch her, in fact the marriage was never consummated. Claire is not even allowed to touch him when they lay in bed at night. The mysterious green album sends shudders through Claire’s veins as it contains indiscreet photos of her, oddly provocative and perverse, a secret fetish of her husband’s. He worships her beauty in an artistic way, but for Claire, the camera lens becomes a dreaded focal point to her marriage.

When she meets John Taylor, Henry’s nephew, their mutual attraction is explosive. This event will alter her destiny as The Notorious Mrs. Winston takes on the persona of Zeke, a young boy eager to join the infamous Morgan Raiders so that she can be with her beloved.

Historiographically, General Morgan and his company of about seventeen hundred men did exist and their presence in the Ohio River area of southern Indiana was intended to cause havoc for the Union men. The fictional Claire, although she claimed allegiance to the Union cause, fought with Morgan’s men to be with John. She is clever, and devoted to him with an unstoppable tenacious willful spirit of adventure.

While it is hard to accept that Claire was able to pull of the disguise of a rebel soldier, when her beauty was evidently striking, I enjoyed her character. Her loyalty and dedication to the Underground Railroad is evident early on, yet she must somehow work with the enemy in order to save herself and a future with the man she loves. Somewhat dramatic in a soap opera way, this still is an enjoyable read. Mackey has since written The Widow’s War, set in the Civil War period which in my opinion is superb. Those looking for an adventurous book for the Civil War Challenge should consider this one.




Wisteria Leigh
January 2011

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2011].

Disclosure: Self-purchase at National Military Park Bookstore, Gettysburg, PA.

Teaser Tuesday-#1 2011

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme,
hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.
Anyone can play along!

This week my teaser comes from:

The Notorious Mrs. Winston

by Mary Makey
Published by Berkley
©2007

"She has come to think of the lens as the barrel of a gun. Even now, when it is pointed in another direction, she feels as if she is standing in the crosshairs." (page 11)





Disclosure: I purchased this book in Gettysburg.

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2011].

Review-Stranger Here Below, by Joyce Hinnefeld

STRANGER HERE BELOW
Joyce Hinnefeld,Unbridled Books,September 28, 2010, $24.95/$28.95 CAN, Hardcover, 299 pp., 978-1609530044.

Book Description from the Publisher

In 1961, when Amazing Grace Jansen, a firecracker from Appalachia, meets Mary Elizabeth Cox, the daughter of a Black southern preacher, at Kentucky’s Berea College, they already carry the scars and traces of their mothers’ troubles. Poor and single, Maze’s mother has had to raise her daughter alone and fight to keep a roof over their heads. Mary Elizabeth’s mother has carried a shattering grief throughout her life, a loss so great that it has disabled her and isolated her stern husband and her brilliant, talented daughter.
The caution this has scored into Mary Elizabeth has made her defensive and too private and limited her ambitions, despite her gifts as a musician. But Maze’s earthy fearlessness might be enough to carry them both forward toward lives lived bravely in an angry world that changes by the day.
Both of them are drawn to the enigmatic Georginea Ward, an aging idealist who taught at Berea sixty years ago, fell in love with a black man, and suddenly found herself renamed as a sister in a tiny Shaker community. Sister Georgia believes in discipline and simplicity, yes. But, more important, her faith is rooted in fairness and the long reach of unconditional love.
This is a novel about three generations of women and the love that makes families where none can be expected. http://unbridledbooks.com/our_books/book//stranger_here_below

My Review

STRANGER HERE BELOW, is an intensely rich novel that left me temporarily paralyzed. Hinnefeld is an author with a story to tell that reaches beyond the last page. The three main women in this book Maze, Mary Elizabeth and Georginea are interconnected to each other with a family history that has far reaching influence. Even though the book ends in 1968, themes and events that shape the characters lives still still hold value today. I can’t say I identified with any specific woman, but more an amalgamation of all many personalities. Women who read this will no doubt experience a similar connection, perhaps more of one than another, but with heartfelt empathy for all.

It is hard to fathom the influence the men in the story held over the women’s lives through the generations with 21st century eyes. Yet, given the time period of the setting, it is not surprising. I was unable to abandon the lives of these characters. I kept flipping back to reread passages with many thoughts to ponder and meaning to interpret. The lives of those who live in Stranger Here Below are compelling, not easily forgotten, nor is the reasoning presented in Sister Georgia’s life reflection:

“She had spent fifty years hiding, she knew now, from the black-coated men who drove the engines of the world. Youth--she and Tobias, Maze and her young man and their friends--so powerless in the face of their laws and their wars. yet children were born, Marthie among them, faces without masks and hearts still pure, their futures unknown.”


Hinnefeld presents her novel in chapters that fluctuate among the varied characters and from a time period that spanned from the 1870‘s through 1968. In my opinion, this technique kept the reader on edge from the onset. Absorbing throughout, this attracted the reader with multiple perspectives and the multi-layered depth given by hearing from all three women.
This is a deeply reflective and noteworthy historical fiction novel I highly recommend.


Wisteria Leigh
December 2010

Disclosure: The copy of this book was sent to me for review as a participant in Library Thing’s Early Reviewer program and represents my unbiased opinion.


© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2010].

Sweeping Up Glass, by Carolyn D. Wall

SWEEPING UP GLASS, Carolyn D. Wall, Poisened Pen Press, 2008, $24.95 US/C, £15.95 UK, hb, 278pp, 978-1-59058-512-2


After reading Sweeping Up Glass, by debut author Carolyn D. Wall I could not move. This book is terrifyingly real and haunting of racial bias imagery of the past.


It is 1938, some say the coldest winter ever in Kentucky. Olivia Harker and her grandson Will’m discover that someone is killing silver faced wolves on their property. Olivia has an idea who is responsible, but doesn’t know why they are targeting them.
Olivia and Will'm live behind Harker’s Grocery, yet her ma’am Ida, lives in a tar paper shack out back. Olivia had her husband Saul settle her there many years ago unable to forgive her for the years of neglect and physical abuse while growing up. On the other hand she is very close to her pap, Tate Harker, a self made veterinarian.
One day with Olivia is driving with her father when they have a horrible accident. This becomes life altering for Olivia. After a long recovery she learns her pap is buried in an unmarked grave next to the outhouse, but she always yearns to move him someday.
During a time of shameless segregation, Olivia befriends Junk, Love Alice and other members of the black community. One night, Olivia stumbles upon a covert gathering of white men. Hidden from view, she listens to the conversations from community leaders who emote racial hatred and bigotry. The disappearance of young black men in the community has raised fear and an acute awareness of racial boundaries.
This significant historical mystery offers a twisted tale with a shocking secret, betrayal and mistrust with a bit of romance. Ms. Wall has a talent for shaping distinctively original southern characters with unique personality traits, some quirky, some hated, some loved, but all memorable. I guarantee they all will stand the test of time.

Wisteria Leigh

That Book Woman by Heather Henson

That Book Woman
by Heather Henson
Illustrated by David Small
40 pages
Atheneum

Heather Henson and David Small collaborate with great success as if they have been a team for years. I thought That Book Woman was an unforgettable historical fiction delight. The author captures the history of FDR’s WPA projects of the 1930s. There was a group known as the Pack Horse Librarians who lived in the Kentucky mountains. These were mostly woman who stepped out of their traditional roles and saddled up to deliver books; becoming a traveling bookmobile on horseback. They were tenacious in their willingness to travel over rough terrain and wild weather to get books to people.

This story is about one such librarian who travels to homes in the rural Appalachian mountains to bring books to people who would otherwise not have any. Lark is a little girl who loves to read. Her brother Cal is the direct opposite and thinks the librarian on horseback is just a bit strange. Week after week she brings books to Lark, but Cal doesn't see the point. Cal respects her tiresome ride and one day his opinion of reading books changes. It is a story you won't want to miss.

Henson makes her writing look simple when in fact it is royally rich on every page. Your senses become acutely aroused with the careful imagery, simile and metaphor. You know exactly what Henson means when she writes “stoney still”, “dusky dark” and “red as clay”.

David Small, an experienced illustrator has won a Caldecott Award for illustrating So You Want to Be President? by Judith St. George and a Caldecott Honor Award. He uses ink, watercolor and pastel chalk to create the subtle soft colorful setting of a quiet slow paced time period, when life was less hurried. He evokes a pastoral image that enhances Henson’s text, each a complement of the other.

To appreciate the charming poetic prose of this book consider this as a read-a-load. Strongly recommended for all libraries as a first choice on their next list.